Yazoo
by Gray Wings
Summary: [Completed] After Sephiroth's final defeat, only one of the silverhaired brothers remains alive to face the world after Jenova. Given to Reno as his own special mission, things might not go as bad as perceived... [Yaoi!]
1. Chapter I

**_Author's Note:_ I have been writing this story for a while now, and am very proud of it. It is my very first FFVII baby. Hope you like! If you see mistakes, tell me please! I am my own beta...**

**_Warnings:_ Shounen-ai, as stated.**

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It is quiet in the halls of ShinRa today. There are no voices whispering in a secluded corner about the President's latest extravaganza, no cheers and high-fives for mission well done as I make my way down to Rude's office. It has been done - Sephiroth has been killed for what we hope is the final time, as well as his ever-so-slightly insane clone, Kadaj. The boy died in Cloud's arms not four hours ago. The orphans that had been brought under the power of Jenova are being cured as I speak, and Cloud and his troupe of heroes can finally bow and leave the stage, for their part is done and over, for good. 

And yet mine is just beginning.

Opening the door to my partner's office, I am greeted with a grim look behind dark sunglasses. He jerks his head back and stands up from his well-made desk - a feat I cannot accomplish in my best days - and makes his way to the back of the spacious room, where a bed is pushed securely to the east wall. I follow in silence, and he turns around for a second, maybe making sure it is really me.

Yes, Rude, for once Reno is all out of jokes.

Stopping in front of the narrow bed, we both stare at its pale inhabitant: Rude calm and I slightly surprised.

"Why is he still alive?"

I flinch at the sound of my own voice, its cold indifference shocking even me.

It is quiet for a second as Rude formulates a sufficient answer, probably not expecting this exact question out of me. I wait patiently, not taking my eyes off the boy lying in front of us.

"We..." he starts, looking for the right words, "We are not exactly sure. Strife's hit should have had enough power to wipe both of them out and yet..."

He sighed, turning around as to look at the sleeping form, as well.

"And yet?" I prompt him, knowing that I would need all the information I can get if my mission would be what I think it is.

"And yet the cleanup crew found him, breathing and alive, underneath his brother. He was unconscious at the time, and they couldn't just kill him, so they brought him here."

"And his brother...?" I ask, a sick feeling welling up in my stomach.

"Dead. There was a tear wide enough to put that stupid stick of yours in it going down his back."

_'He saved him.'_ The thought astonished me. Until now I - who am I kidding? - _**We **_all thought that the three Jenova puppets were just that - pretty dolls, programmed for mass destruction, without any feelings or thoughts to put into their actions.

Yet, such a sacrifice...

"Reno," I look towards Rude, realizing that I had been staring at the boy again, "I know you are not in the babysitting-kind-of jobs, but no one else would take him in. I myself have to leave in two weeks for another mission, and you were the only one I could think of that has no one to endanger with his presence," he let the words sink in, and then continued: "It would be of great help to ShinRa if you could watch over him for the time being."

I sigh. It would be a lie to say that I did not expect this, but it still did nothing to calm my nerves. I have never shared house with anyone except Rude, when he would come and crash for a while after an especially exhausting mission, and that usually lasted no more than two days. To say I didn't want to start playing house with a confused and potentially dangerous clone is an understatement.

Taking my silence for refusal, Rude sighs and then proceeds to walk back over to his desk, sitting with a slight creak into the leather chair.

"I expected as much. I guess I will try with Tseng," he winces quietly, and I almost chuckle.

Oh, alright.

"I will do it."

I smirk at the surprised smile he sends my way, and then jump on his desk, crossing my legs in a lady-like fashion.

"After all, I do love you sooooooooo much, my bald sweetie!"

"Get OUT!"

Chapter I

Looking out of the fogged window in my small kitchen I sigh, sipping from a huge cup of chocolate cappuccino while shivering slightly. It has been two days since my little chat with Rude and the unpleasant surprise in his office, and I am currently waiting for said surprise to show its pretty ass on my doorsteps any moment now. I still cannot believe I agreed to such an absurd mission, and yet there are certain benefits. Paid vacation at home while outside is three degrees under zero is certainly one of them.

Yet, I can't shake the feeling that I've just made a huge, possibly uncorrectable, mistake.

A knock on my front door shakes me back to reality and I leave my comfortable place on the windowsill to go and open it, looking from the peephole like a good little civilian. Seeing the snow reflect from a certain bald head, I smile devilishly and throw the door open.

"Merry Christmas!" I shout at my (predictably) expressionless partner, earning a scowl for all my trouble.

Well, lookie who is in a bad mood today...

"Just take him in already," he sighs before pushing what seems like a human-shaped pillow in my arms, smiling smugly once I have it held securely to my body.

"What IS this?" I ask, at once turning slightly afraid at the smirk I receive as an answer.

"That, my dear friend, is your present," Rude practically chortles out before diving in his black automobile and speeding off, laughing all the while.

I stare after him for a second, then shake my head with a snicker and pull the lucid figure in my home.

This, people, is what I have to work with every day.

And they call ME a child.

After stripping the poor boy from all the covers that had been woven around his lithe body (and getting kicked quite a few times for all my trouble), I finally have Yazoo – as I remember hearing him called while he was kicking m- _Rude's_ ass not fourteen days ago – securely tied to the bed.

No, there is no innuendo. Perverts.

Now, should I gag him or not?

Or maybe just blindfold him. His staring at me is starting to creep me out.

"So... Welcome!" I smile and make an over-exaggerated bow, my hair falling over my shoulder.

He continues looking at me, his eyes loosing some of their hostility.

"Where...?" he stops, his throat too sore to continue, dry lips opening and closing in confusion.

Dorky, but kind of cute, too.

"Here," I grab a glass of water and tip some in his mouth.

He swallows painfully and then grimaces, probably because of the bad aftertaste of all the drugs that he had been hooked on up to now.

Seeing as he was making another try at talking, I sigh.

"Save it, pretty boy. You are in my home, and that's all you need to know. You will remain here until further directions from ShinRa. So," I lean closer to him, until my lips are right next to his oval-shaped ear, "just enjoy the ride."

I smirk at his reddening face and straighten up, making my way back to the windowsill.

* * *

You know, this is not proving to be as much fun as I thought it would be. I mean, I expected some form of struggle from the guy – not deadly, but at least slightly dangerous, so I do not feel bored out of my mind most of the time. But no, all he does is sleep all day or lounge on the sofa and stare blankly at my wall. Honestly, the damn piece of wood is not so interesting. Half of the time he doesn't even make the effort to put on something more than a long T-shirt (that he borrowed at some point), making me wonder exactly how long his slender legs were. 

Not that I was looking. Nope, not me. Uh-uh...

Okay, maybe just a little. And can you blame? I haven't seen the outside in, well, three days now (Rude says we can't take the chance yet), with provisions and such promised to be delivered once a week by a Turk or another on their way to work.

Work. I never thought I would miss you so. With a boring hermaphrodite for my only company, even Tseng's monotonous speeches about "his office not being a brothel" and Elena's constant PMSing seem desirable.

I shake my head and groan, slowly sitting up on the dark-blue coach I had been lounging on. Honestly, I am so damn bored that I might actually appreciate it if the guy tries to escape already!

A blood-curling scream from somewhere in the house quickly has me changing my mind.

Sprinting in blind panic towards the guestroom at the end of the hall I grab blindly for the gun dangling from my jeans, hands suddenly sweaty. Honestly, if I find him doing anything even _slightly_ Sephiroth-like...

I skid to a halt in front of the dark door behind which the demon awaited me, cursing profusely as the screams seemed to increase in vigor and volume. Taking a deep breath I extend the hand that is not holding the gun towards the doorknob.

Today is the day that Reno shows every damn AVALANCHE member that no, I do not run at first sight of trouble. If, by any chance, I am unable to be present when this fact becomes known because of previous engagement with a coffin, I would make sure it is written on my tombstone.

Another scream and I finally muster enough courage to twist the door open, ready for anything and everything as I point my gun at the bed and its occupant.

Its very asleep occupant.

Cursing under my breath I lower the gun, realizing what was going on. The damn brat was having a fucking nightmare! To think I got so worked up...

"Nii-san..."

I sigh softly, looking yet again in direction of the panting teen, my legs taking me near the gray bed. I halt at its foot, looking at the boy laying on it. White mane spread behind his beautiful face like a halo, legs and body tangled into sweaty covers... God, is it so wrong to think he is the single most-stunning creature I have ever seen?

His eyebrows knit, his lips part, and another horrific scream is released, followed by a single tear. Damn, he knows how to tug at heartstrings, it seems, because he is playing mine like a damn harp.

Putting my gun away for the moment, I crouch on the side of his sleeping form and snort. Damn brat, looking at him at the moment he seems unable to kill a kitten, not to talk about destroying the world.

A pale hand strikes up suddenly, wrapping around my slightly-tanner one, pulling me over the panting teen as two huge, cat-like eyes snap open, irises a mere slit in a sea of green.

"NII-SAN!"

He screams and screams, mouth opening and closing in heavy gasps, short nails leaving red marks on my hands. I wince, as from my position my head is right above his face, and quickly use my other hand to silence him. This seems to encourage him more, however, as his eyes fill with helpless terror and his trashing increases, bare legs wildly kicking at me.

"Good god, it is okay— fuck!" I swear as he bites me, a tiny rivulet of blood making its way steadily down his chin, eyes glowing in the darkness.

"Listen to me! Damn you, fucking listen to me!" I gasp, pulling my hand away from his desperate grasp, wounding it around his midsection and pulling him up against me, "Shhh. It's alright, okay? No one is going to hurt you. I am here, okay?"

He does not respond, and suddenly I feel his head dropping heavily on my shoulder. For a moment I think he has fallen asleep, perhaps close to it, for his voce comes as a whisper, a mere breath against my shoulder.

"He betrayed us," he murmurs, and says no more, leaving me to ponder those heartbroken words as he slumbers against me. Did he mean Cloud? Sephiroth? Kadaj, even? Who knows.

I sigh, knowing full well that I would not be able to move away until he releases me, and instead shift against the wooden headboard of his bed. My gun is safely tucked somewhere below my waistband, and I am not planning on sleeping anyway, so it won't be such a big deal if I stay with him, right?

...Right.

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**Suprisingly, I have the story completed. Next chapter will be posted tomorrow. Love you guys!**


	2. Chapter II

**_Author's Note:_ Last chapter! As I promised, I have it done. XD Sappy, romantic... What more can you want? **

**_Warnings:_ While the characters/setting is not mine (they belong to Square Enix), the story is. You know the rest.**

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Chapter II

Silence. Darkness.

I hold my breath, body trembling slightly in strain, chest heaving.

Footsteps. Slightly muffled but still there, pausing every few seconds with the sound of doors opening and quietly closing, then continuing again.

Exhaling slowly as the predatory sound passes me, I grab stealthily for my cell phone and dial a familiar number, the glow of the telephone screen calming my tattered nerves.

I put the thing to my ear just as Rude picks up, hurriedly whispering in the device.

"Rude, Reno here. Come quickly!"

There is a static on the other line, then Rude's professional voice answers me quietly:

"Where are you, Reno?"

"In a fucking closet, man!" I groan, and then pause to think about the sentence's underlying meaning. Hah. Funny. "Look, just come as quickly as you can and bring some—"

"RENO! I found you!!!!"

Gulping as a flood of light suddenly deluges the little corner I had managed to cram myself in, I sigh. So much for that idea.

Pocketing my shiny new razor (another bonus for being a Turk; we get all the cool gadgets before they hit the market), I get up slowly, wincing quietly as my legs have fallen asleep some time ago. Wide green eyes meet mine as I finally look up with a frown, nervous fingers grabbing for the crumpled package of expensive cigarettes in my back pocket.

"Yeah, yeah, you got me. I bow to your tracking prowess, oh wonderful one. I mean, one hour to find me in a one-floor, two-bedroom house? Sheer genius!" I grumble, not actually mad but still ticked off that I had been tricked into playing such a childish game AND lost.

Yazoo smirks, clever eyes staring into mine with an amused understanding. I narrow my eyes at him, snort, and flick my hair in a decidedly girly fashion before grabbing the cheap, plastic lighter I keep on my person and lighting the stick already dangling from my lips. The boy (I do not how old he is, but am pretty sure he is younger than me) flicks those unnaturally beautiful eyes down to my mouth, lips curling in a decidedly disgusted fashion. I know what he thinks of smoking, and it took me quite a while of bitching to get him to stop snatching my cigarettes as soon as I take them out. It paid off, however, as all he does now is glare at me and…

Wait, why is he smirking?

"What?" I groan, sounding more like 'unt?' with my mouth otherwise occupied, staring at him suspiciously.

Not without a reason, it seems, for he suddenly steps closer to me, making me step back in turn. It is too late when I finally realize all that is behind me is the back wall of my very-much empty closet, and soon all I see is the darkness of the house around us and his glowing eyes.

"My prize?" he whispers, face suddenly gone from playful to serious in the blink of an eye. I start, more surprised than anything, able to utter nothing more than another intelligent "Unt?" in response.

"My prize," he whispers huskily again, closing the space between us until his ruby lips are millimeters from mine. My cigarette is gone, crumpled underneath his slippers (my poor floor!), and I wonder dazedly when had that happened, "Do I not win anything for finding you?"

"What…" I swallow, eyes drown to the soft swell of his mouth, "What do you want?"

"Hmm…" the bastard has the nerve to act sweetly undecided, a finger coming between us to tap at his lips (oh, sweet Shiva) even while his eyes never leave mine, "Oh, I do not know… Perhaps—"

He never gets to finish, and I do not know if I should be more relieved or frustrated. A sudden crunch of wood striking wood and I recognize the sound of my front door being forcefully kicked in, and we both jump guiltily from each other.

"Reno, get down!" someone shouts, and suddenly Yazoo doubles over, a decidedly surprised expression on his face. I shiver as his eyes turn to me for a second, full of confusion and hurt, before they close and he collapses into an unruly pile on the floor.

Turning a furious gaze to the much un-wanted occupants of my doorway, I swallow a frustrated scream. Instead, my voice comes out more like a hiss, hands clenching with the need to hurt something, and _fast_.

"What the _**fuck**_ are you shitheads doing here?"

Rude actually has the balls to look insulted, while Elena and Tseng eye me coolly behind black sunglasses. Standing in the mess of splinters and decorations (after some big-eyed looks from Yazoo, I relented and nailed a Christmas-tree branch on the front door), they look like they have just stepped out of a bad yakuza movie.

"You requested help," my wonderful partner states, raising an eyebrow as I quickly kneel and check the boy's pulse. Yeah, gawk all you want, I DO have a heart you know.

Especially when it comes to green-eyed, long-legged babes. If that sounds familiar, let me just say that a little self-love does not hurt anyone.

"I did NOT ask for half the Turks on duty to come pouring through my front door – for which, by the way, YOU are paying – and— Holly shit, what the fuck are THEY doing here?!!!"

Half-way through my (very justified) tirade a very memorable, very unwanted mob of unruly blonde hair had stepped past my smirking coworkers, intense blue eyes sweeping from me to Yazoo (whom I cradle to my chest a little bit more) and then back up to glare at me. Behind him I see another familiar, red-cloaked shadow, and gulp. The kid might not move me, but the "not" vampire scares the fuck out of me.

"So," Elena interjects smoothly, albeit a bit nervously, "I take it was a false alarm?"

"Well, does it LOOK like I need help?" I snarl, not trusting the sudden coldness that has crept in the SOLDIER wanna-be's mako infused eyes to leave Yazoo on the ground and stand up to face them. As ridiculous as it might seem, I actually feel responsible for him, even if he did wipe the floor with my ass last time I saw him. Of course, that was because I was distracted and suffering from a hang-over, but still.

"Then, we shall be leaving," Tseng states calmly, not a bit ruffled at the impeding bloodshed Strife seems to have planned, judging by the slight tremor of his muscled arms. Instead he simply turns around and exits, completely sure Elena and Rude will follow.

Elena does instantly, the suck up that she is, but Rude takes a bit more time. Looking between me and the hunched figure of one Cloud Strife, he hesitates.

"Reno…"

"Just get the hell out, baldie," I wave at him distractedly, touched that he would disobey orders to help me out but still understanding the situation enough as to not make the spiky hero twitchier. He waves back at me, if a bit more stiffly, and after giving me one more dubious look exits too.

Well, three down and two to go. I roll my eyes at the stoic, vaguely-emoish look on the face of the fearless AVALANCHE leader, and decide to break the ice before it gets any more uncomfortable and I end up with a seven-foot sword up my ass.

"So… The hole in my door is right there," I point out helpfully, actually wincing as painfully-blue eyes snap up to mine once again. Well, at least _I_ am not as nervous. Plus, he seems to be lacking his sword. Double victory!

"I should kill him."

The soft, haunted voice that suddenly comes from the previously-silent blonde chills me to the core. I narrow my eyes at him, right hand twitching for my gun while my left clutches at the slender waist of the trembling body beneath my fingers. I suddenly feel the numbing winter wind sweeping through the ruined door, shivering despite myself.

"What if I don't let you?" I snarl, suddenly sick from this shit. Not only do they bust in here, all heroic and sneering and very much uninvited, but they dare also threaten someone that has lost as much as them, if not more. Yazoo has not done a single suspicious thing while under my supervision. Instead, he seems truly confused as to what to do with himself now, as his whole purpose had been to live and die for Jenova. Now that _she_ is gone, that _they_ are gone, he is the only one left to take the blame. It seems awfully unfair to me, and the way the stupid little prick is behaving does not help my mood at all.

"You have no choice, Turk," his voice has gone to the familiar monotone I myself sometimes use before severing some unfortunate shit's balls, and I slowly inch for the gun pushed in the waistband of my pants. I probably would not make it, but damn if I do not die trying.

He steps forward, deceptively slender hands twitching with concealed violence. I know I am in trouble now; one glance at the prone form beneath me confirms that, as the only one in this room that can perhaps take the kid on is unconscious.

Before I can really start to freak out and do something stupid like throw a near-by shoe at my future attacker, a clawed hand shots out to grab the blonde across the middle. I am in slight shock, partly because the kid's homicidal aura had made me forget the presence of the second AVALANCHE member, as well as because of the strange familiarity the two seem to share.

"Cloud."

A single word, and yet it seems to have awoken the other from a deep slumber. Even while he is still glaring at Yazoo's slumped form, Strife does not seem about to kill him – and me, if I got in the way – with his bare hands. Yet, I am not sure I like the change which comes over his stony features.

"It will happen again, Vincent," he whispers, staring at the boy and me with a horrified, wide-eyed expression, "He is so much like him. Too much like him. I can't…" He halts, hands clenching again as his eyes clamp closed, "I _won't_ go through it again! I cannot…loose anymore."

I brave a quick look towards Valentine's face, not surprised when what I can see from it is totally blank. Not for the first time am I grimly reminded that he has, indeed, been a Turk for a good part of his life. Had fit in perfectly, too, as he could give Tseng a run for his money in professional calmness in stressful situations. His human hand goes up to wrap around the smaller boy's bicep, and I sigh in relief as I realize he will not let him do anything stupid.

"Cloud, he is not them. She is not with him; never has been. Only Kadaj. He was her chosen one. Leave him be, he has nothing but his life now."

I marvel at the sudden calmness Valentine's voice brings to the other, being even more surprised as a hard little something slowly unwinds in my chest. I might like Yazoo, but I will be lying if I say that Strife's doubts had never passed my mind. Yet, I find myself believing the older man – which is pretty weird, taking that I can usually only see his eyes.

"Vincent…" an exasperated sigh, and Cloud moves back a step, glaring at me once more before turning around and promptly exiting. The swiftness of the action takes my breath away, as it seems the whole tenseness of the moment seeps out with him into the night, leaving me exhausted.

"Reno."

I turn my head sharply in the direction of the lonely figure standing in my doorway, and sigh. I was hoping it would not come to this.

"I…" I hesitate, looking into his unnaturally-red eyes. He raises an eyebrow, and I continue hastily, "Thanks. For that. I mean—"

"I do not need your thanks. I did not do it for you," Valentine's voice has gone back to its usual coldness, looking at Yazoo instead of me. I shift slightly, almost unconsciously, to shield him better.

Surprisingly, that seems to please him. He stares at me for a long moment, and then also turns to leave.

Just as I am releasing a breath I had probably been holding since Rude left, a low, almost vulnerable voice reaches me.

"Just… Take care of him, Turk."

A swish of red and Vincent Valentine is gone, leaving me to stare after him and wonder. Could it be…?

Well, tonight is full of surprises, it seems.

"By Kami, what happened here?"

I almost jump as a pale hand suddenly wraps around mine, ungracefully falling from my crouched position (my legs are all cramped again) on my ass.

"Shit, kid, you scared the crap out of me!" I moan, rubbing at my face even as Yazoo rights himself up behind me, pulling a small arrow I recognize as a sedative from his stomach with a wince.

_That_ sound sobers me up and before I even think about what I am doing I have already reached for the other, pushing him back on the wooden floor and hefting his (mine) long shirt up to expose his stomach. Probing wordlessly around for the enter wound, I refuse to drool at the sight in front of me, instead focusing at the task at hand.

"Reno, what are you doing?" amused, Yazoo' voice wafts up to me even as coy green eyes stare intently at my hands.

Finally finding the little red dot near his navel and spotting no further infection, I sigh before grinning charmingly, stroking with a bit more purpose now that everything is under control.

"Why, feeling you up, of course. Why, you want to go back into the closet or something?"

My leer clearly must be amusing for he laughs, and I am suddenly struck with how far I have fallen. Damn, I could have _died_ tonight, died for a man that had been dead-set on destroying the world not a week ago, and it all seems alright as long as he is here and happy.

This is bad. More than bad, this is dangerous.

Yet, I cannot move when he finally stops laughing. Cannot say anything when his fingers lace with mine and he pulls himself up to straddle my long-numb legs. Even as his lips descend upon mine in a sweet, soft kiss, I cannot do more than fall open to it and stupidly, foolishly hope that we can remain like this forever.

We part after a long minute, both breathing hard even while the kiss itself had remained chaste in all rights, staring at each other with something different gracing our eyes. He lowers his head once more, silver hair trailing across naked shoulder (the shirt truly is too wide for him), warm breath ghosting over the chilled skin of my neck.

"Thank you, Reno."

I can feel the smile he hides against me, and the uncertainty of the moment is broken. Suddenly, I know exactly what to do, and I realize I have never been happier with a night gone this wrong.

"Well, now," I drawl, drawing him closer to me and somehow managing to stand up as well, one hand burying into soft white tresses while the other slides down a curved hip, "I can think of better ways for you to thank me…"

Laughing, he pushes me away playfully, emerald eyes promising lustily while the rest of him stands just out of reach.

"I don't know. You still owe me a kiss…" With that, he twirls on his heel and disappears, hopefully in the direction of the bedroom.

"Hah, you little shit! What was that just now?" I call after him, grinning so hard that I feel my jaw might split.

"You call that a kiss?" His voice taunts, and I can almost imagine the laughter in his eyes. I laugh, as well, trailing after his voice and promising many, many things that will get me a permanent membership to Santa's "naughty" list.

Suddenly, this year's holidays seem a lot more welcoming.

Tseng really has to fix that door, though.

* * *

**Owari **

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